When are infants overcapacity allowed in a reservation?

An infant is considered a child younger than 2 years old. If your property allows children, most booking channels will automatically allow at least one infant over your property's maximum capacity. However, policies vary depending on which booking platform your guests use to reserve your property.

Infant overcapacity policies by booking channel

Below is a detailed guide to understand how each major booking platform handles infant reservations:

Airbnb

• Infants are defined as children under 2 years old; children are ages 2-12
• Infants stay for free if your property allows children
• Children aged 2-12 are priced the same as adults
• Guests can bring up to 5 infants over your maximum capacity

Booking.com

• Guests can bring 1 infant (under 2 years old) over your maximum capacity
• Infants stay for free

Holidu

• Infants under 2 years old stay for free
• Everyone else counts as an adult
• There are no restrictions on the number of infants allowed over your maximum capacity

VRBO

• Infants and children both count as adults
• No infants are allowed over your maximum capacity

Important things you should know

You cannot change these policies

These infant overcapacity rules are part of the terms and conditions you agreed to when listing your property with each booking channel. This setting cannot be modified or customized for your specific property.

You cannot modify property descriptions about infant overcapacity

It is not possible to add restrictions or special notes to your property description regarding infant overcapacity policies. These are controlled by the booking platforms themselves.

Disallow children to prevent infant overcapacity

If you do not want infants exceeding your property's maximum capacity, the only available option is to set your property to "children not allowed" in your amenities settings.

To do this:

1. Go to Configuration on the top-left side of your host dashboard
2. Navigate to 'Amenities'
3. Navigate to 'Children'
4. Select 'Children Not Allowed'

This will prevent all guests, including those with infants, from booking your property through any channel.

Cancellation penalties apply to infant-related cancellations

If you choose to cancel a booking because of an infant exceeding your property's capacity, this will be considered a host cancellation. You may face penalties or account restrictions from the booking channel as a result. Booking cancellations can negatively impact your host rating and standing.

Summary

Most major booking channels allow at least one infant over your maximum capacity as part of their standard policies. Only VRBO counts infants as adults. You cannot modify these platform-level policies for your individual property. If infant overcapacity is a concern for your property, your only option is to disable children at your property entirely. Always review your booking terms to understand the specific policies for each platform where you list.